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Giving the homeless a place to live costs less than providing shelters and emergency services

Governments now spend more than $4 billion a year dealing with homelessness in this country.

Housing and rent subsidies are a cheaper way to deal with homelessness than shelters and emergency services. (Paul Lachine / NewsArt)

By Benjamin Gillies

Mon., Oct. 15, 2012

Last month, the Canadian Homelessness Research Network (CHRN) released a compilation report on the costs of caring for Canadians on the street. While homeless advocates usually make appeals to compassion and morality when championing policy reforms to help the most impoverished of this country’s citizens, the report attempts to illustrate empirically the financial impact of homelessness.

What author Stephen Gaetz makes clear is that calculating the cost of homelessness must not only account for shelters or soup kitchens, but also peripheral services, such as health care and the justice system, that homeless people come into contact with more frequently than society at large. As they are often poorly nourished, unable to engage in adequate sanitation practices, and live in settings where exposure to communicable disease is high, for instance, homeless Canadians experience a serious deterioration of their physical health. In addition, 40 per cent of this population suffers from mental health issues. As a result, they are hospitalized five times more often than the general public during any given year, usually for longer periods.

According to a 2007 Wellesley Institute report cited by the CHRN, the average monthly expense of housing a homeless person in a Toronto hospital is $10,900. To provide them with a shelter bed costs $1,932. But here is where the data may surprise you: Putting a roof over that same person’s head, either with rent supplements or social housing, would require just $701 or $199.92, respectively. In fact, a similar study conducted in British Columbia discovered that province’s homeless population currently costs the public system $55,000 per person per year, but if every homeless person were instead provided with adequate housing and supports, they would require just $37,000 — saving the province $211 million annually.

When it comes to social policy, Canadians are often told there must be a balance between compassion and affordability. As it turns out, in this case, the right thing to do is also the least expensive. This should perhaps come as no surprise, as in life generally a proactive strategy is almost always more efficient than a reactive one. Still, there is now hard data to show funding emergency services, shelters, and day programs is just not as cost-effective as providing homeless citizens with a place to live and the social supports to help them stay there.

This week, Members of Parliament will debate bill C-400, introduced by New Democrat Marie-Claude Morin, on providing housing for all Canadians. If passed, the legislation would require the minister responsible for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. to work with provincial governments, municipal representatives, First Nations communities, and housing providers to ensure all citizens have access to secure and affordable housing.

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Up until now, the governing Conservatives have been resistant to take action on this front, arguing municipalities and the provinces are closer to the ground on this issue. As a result, Canada remains one of the few countries in the world without a national housing strategy. Yet, as Ottawa funds many of the agencies disproportionately used by homeless people, federal officials ought to recognize its incentive to show leadership in this crisis.

Moreover, MPs would be wise to consider the positive ramifications of dealing with the root causes of homelessness, rather than attempting to manage the crisis after the fact, that extend beyond simply saving money. Providing housing limits the likelihood someone will become involved with the criminal justice system, for example, and ensuring they are housed reduces the chance they will reoffend. A 2009 report from the Victoria police force shows people on the street have 74 per cent fewer brushes with the law after they are housed, which of course keeps our communities safer — a major goal of the federal administration.

According to CHRN, governments spend more than $4 billion a year dealing with homelessness in this country. Were Ottawa and the provinces to adopt a co-ordinated approach to ending homelessness instead of leaving a patchwork of government agencies, church groups, and other non-profit organizations to look after the hundreds of thousands of people across Canada lacking a roof over their heads, they could save hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

In a time of economic turmoil, politicians are eager to prove they can diligently manage the public purse. As they begin to debate bill C-400, they should keep in mind that without even considering any moral rationale, the most fiscally responsible strategy for helping homeless Canadians is the one staring us right in the face. Give them a home. As the evidence shows, it will leave us all better off.

Benjamin Gillies is a political economy graduate from the University of Manitoba, where he focused on urban development and energy policy. He is a consultant in Winnipeg.

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